My Foolish Heart
by CeliaEquus
Summary: At a ball celebrating five years since THAT night, Jareth is determined to get a dance--and perhaps something more--from Sarah. The song is, of course, "My Foolish Heart".


"My Foolish Heart"

_The night is like a lovely tune;_

_Beware, my foolish heart._

_How white the ever constant moon;_

_Take care, my foolish heart._

This ball had just confirmed things. She didn't have any good feelings for him. At least, not like he had for her. Right now, Sarah was dancing with Ludo, the great furry thing. Jareth scowled, and took out his bad temper on a goblin standing nearby. His kick sent it flying over the wall, squealing with enjoyment, into a nearby fountain. Honestly. Where was the fun in kicking one's subjects when they enjoyed it, and you were in a sour mood? It'd be all right if it was to entertain himself… but he had been counting on Sarah to provide him with that.

And he hadn't had one dance with her that night. Not one! And he was giving the ball in her honour! It had been exactly five years—a momentous anniversary—since she had run the labyrinth.

More to the point, it was five years to the day since they had met. And she gave that no thought whatsoever.

He sneered. What kind of foolish Fae fell for a mortal? Love-struck. Moon-struck. Why, oh _why_ had he made it an outdoors affair? They could have been inside, without the crystal, lunar beams striking her face, and with plenty of dark spaces for him to corner her in.

"Oh yes," he muttered to himself, kicking a stone with the toe of his left boot. "She didn't want the bad memories associated with _that_ ballroom. Brilliant."

_There's a line between love and fascination_

_That's hard to see on an evening such as this;_

_For they both give the very same sensation_

_When you're lost in the magic of a kiss._

Damn it all! He was going to get a dance with her if it killed him!

Unfortunately, there was little chance of him getting to her without using some kind of force. The party had been going for an hour, and Sarah still hadn't danced with everyone yet (least of all the Goblin King). Still more people, goblins and… other beings alike. No Fae. After the last ball… well, he'd never liked any of them anyway. They were fine for a laugh, but when he thought over how they treated his Sarah, despite his efforts to make her enjoy herself, he saw them as infrequently as possible.

Another dance came to an end. He used his magic to start up _that_ song, the one he had sung to her in the enchanted ballroom. So she didn't want to be reminded of their first, last, and only dance? Well, tough luck. He had been generous so far. She knew, from personal experience, that he could go the other way perfectly well.

He strode through the other dancers as the first chords sounded, and Sarah froze where she was. Was it the familiar music? Or did she know that he was approaching? Either way, she didn't seem that surprised when he spoke.

"Sarah," he said. It wasn't a question. She turned slowly, and he held out his arms. He saw, and heard, her swallow as she stepped into his embrace. The magical dance floor—that the king had built himself for this very occasion—was cleared as they began to move around the wooden platform.

"Your majesty," she whispered. "Thank you for the ball. It's very kind of you."

"Anything for you, precious," he replied. The moon really did pale comparison to the young woman he held in his arms, even as it shone on her upturned face.

He could so easily kiss her. Just a bit closer…

_Her lips are much too close to mine,_

_Beware, my foolish heart._

_But should our eager lips combine_

_Then let the fire start._

Would she move at the last second, or just let herself be kissed? And if she moved, would it be towards him, or away? _And_, if she moved away, would it be because no doubt everyone was staring, or because she was worried about the reactions of her friends… or because she really didn't love him?

But if she moved forward…

"Jareth," she said, speaking his name for the first time. His eyes widened, and he moved his head back right away, suddenly very unsure of himself. What had he been thinking? No warning, no assurance that she may be receptive to his advances, no privacy. He wouldn't blame her if she hated him forever for this.

"I'm sorry," he said. "Forgive me, Sarah. I don't know what came over me."

"No; I apologise for speaking, your highness…"

"I've told you before to call me 'Jareth'," he reprimanded her, realising that they were still dancing, as if on this auto-pilot Hoggle had once mentioned.

"Yes, and look where it got me."

"I'm not angry, Sarah."

"Well, I am!"

"I _apologised_," he hissed, his grip tightening.

"You didn't let me finish," she said, and he tried to calm down.

"Fine then," he conceded. "What were you going to say?"

"I was simply annoyed that I missed out on a kiss. You… _were_ going to kiss me… weren't you?"

He stared down at her. Eventually, he spoke.

"Well… yes, I was."

"Then finish what you almost started… Jareth."

"Right," he said, and he leaned down again.

_For this time it isn't fascination,_

_Or a dream that will fade and fall apart._

_It's love this time;_

_It's love, my foolish heart._

**

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**

Well, I think we can all safely assume that he kissed her, and that they lived happily ever after. My second song fic. Proud of me? I feel bad about not having written as much as I should have lately, though I've done a fair amount of plotting for my WIPs. Even finished working out what's going to happen in most of them. Certainly the four going at the moment, so my regular readers ought to be pleased to hear (read) that.

**I don't own the song "My Foolish Heart", nor do I own Jareth and Co. Pity.**


End file.
